WELL DONE KEVIN! 
even with a fry daddy I still use the candy therm to get the temp correct!
Ditto to that, both as well done and also to the thermometer. Ya gots to know where you are, else French Fried horn is not very usable.
Personally, and this is just my opinion, and what the hell do I know about all this, I would never use the hot oil technique again. Well, that's fair, because I do not see myself ever making another powder horn again. But if I did, I would certainly use a hot air gun.
Kevin, a couple of hints on flattening horns. Use the thinnest horn you can find. A heavy walled horn just takes too much effort to get hot enough to form. Especially for a newbie like yourself. Next, use a horn that is as narrow as you can find, else a wider horn will look like a sail. Not good. When you are mounting the horn in the vise, always put it between wooden plates to make sure you don't get the teeth marks from your vise pads onto the horn, although that might make an interesting pattern. I took the metal pads off my vise and replaced them with a couple of wooden ones I made, somewhat oversized. As far as heating the horn, first get it hot enough to do a primary flattening. Then mount it between your wooden pads and reheat it. Play the heat around the base, getting the air flow up and into the horn, then run it back and forth over the top and over the bottom. When the horn is pliable, give it a squeeze or two, then tap your form a time or two. And you might want a few side shims to keep the sides from bowing in.
John (Bigsmoke)
